Transfer car operating mechanism



May 29, 1951 G. w. HEGEL 2,554,984

TRANSFER CAR OPERATING MECHANISM Filed Oct. 8, 1947 George Hegel,

His Attorng.

Patented May 29, 1951 TRANSFER CAR OPERATING MECHANISM George W. Hegel,Glenville, N. Y., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation ofNew York Application October 8, 1947, Serial No. 778,617

Claims.

My invention relates to a transfer car operating mechanism, moreparticularly to operating mechanism for a transfer car used in movingfurnace cars into and out of furnaces and from one furnace to another,and has for its object simple and reliable mechanism providing amultiplying movement for increasing the distance over which the furnacecar is moved so that the furnace car can be moved beyond the transfercar into the furnace.

In carrying out my invention in one form I provide an elongated memberor boom secured at one end to a carriage mounted on the transfer car formovement transversely of the transfer car. On each end of the boom Iprovide a pulley, together with a cable extending around the pulleys andhaving its ends secured to opposite sides of the transfer car. In theoperation of the device the furnace car is attached to the cable andthereafter the carriage is moved to the opposite side of the transfercar. The carriage moves with it the furnace car and, at the same time,the cable moves along the elongated member so as to give the furnace cara movement in addition to that provided by the movement of the carriageitseif.

For a more complete understanding of my invention, reference should behad to the accompanying drawing, Fig. 1 of which is a fragmentaryelevation View showing transfer car operating mechanism embodying myinvention, while l Fig. 2 is a view mainly in section showing theapparatus of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, I have shown my invention in one form asapplied to a transfer car I mounted for movement on a track 2 in frontof a plurality of furnaces, three of which, 9, 4, andV 5 are shown. Thistransfer car is used to move the furnace cars G, only one of which isshown, forming the bottom Walls cf the furnace into and out of thefurnaces and to desired positions along the track 2 for the loading ofthe charge to be heated prior to the heating operation and the disposalof the heated charge after it has been heated.

My invention has particular application to mechanism for moving thefurnace car S from the transfer car to a heating position in the furnaceand from the furnace on to the transfer car and, more particularly, theprovision of means for moving the furnace car a desired distance afterit has been moved off the transfer car I,

In one form of my invention I provide an elongated member or boom 'I onthe transfer car I, which member is mounted at one end, the lefthand endas seen in Fig. 2, on a carriage '64 movable in a predetermined straightpath on a track 9 extending crosswise of the car I substantially midwayof the length of the car. As shown, the boom 1 is secured to thecarriage by means of posts I0 and II so that it is horizontal andextends transversely of the car I and parallel with the track 9, justabove the top of the car. For the purpose of providing a multiplyingmovement, I provide a cable I2, such as a wire, rope, chain, etc., whichextends around pulleys I3 and I4 mounted on opposite ends of the boom Iwith lengths I3 and I4 extending from each pulley back toward theopposite end of the boom and crossing each other, the ends of the cablebeing secured by suitable means to opposite or more remote sides of thetransfer car at the points I5 and I6. A suitable latching projection orknob II is provided on the upper length of the cable I2 extendingbetween the pulleys near its left-hand end adjacent the carriage whenthe carriage, as seen in Fig. 2, is in its left-hand retracted position,by means of which knob I'I a furnace car may be secured to the cable. Asshown in Fig. 2 the furnace car is provided at its left-hand end with avertically movable latch. I8 which may be lifted bymeans of av lever I9and which is provided with projectionsembracng the knob I'I.

The carriage 8 may be moved on the track 9 to move the car 6 into thefurnace 4 by means of an electric motor 20, usually provided with abrake to stop and hold the carriage at a desired position, which isconnected to drive a sprocket gear 2l with which engages a chain 22passing around a second sprocket wheel 23 on the opposite side of thetransfer car and having its ends secured to the carriage B throughsuitable shock-absorbing springs 24 and 25. As the carriage 8 is movedtoward the right hand from the position shown' in Fig. 1 across the carI to its opposite side, the marriage moves withit the boom 'I wherebythe furnace car 6 is moved toward the right hand on a pair of rails 26forming a track mounted on top of the car I. At 'the same time the cableI2 is caused to move over the pulleys I3 and IlI by reason of the factthat the ends of the cable are secured to the opposite side of the carI. It will be understood that when the boom is moving. toward the righthand, as seen in Fig. 2, the cable moves with reference to the boom,likewise toward the right hand, as well as moving in the s ame directionwith the boom. As a result of this multiplying action, the knob I'I isgiven a movement which is twice the movement of the carriage 8 wherebythe knob is moved to the righthand end of the boom and the furnace car 6is moved beyond the transfer car I into furnace 4. This is indicated bythe position of the knob I'I relative to the boom after the furnace carhas been moved into the furnace, as shown by dash and dot lines in Fig.2.

When it is desired to remove a car from a furnace, the boom I is movedunderneath the car until the knob II comes under ythe. latch I8. Thelatch is then lowered and the boom moved back over the transfer carwhereby the furnace car is moved on the transfer car as shown in Fig. 2.As shown, the charge carried by-the furnacecar a cylindrical steelbillet 21.

As shown in Fig. 2, the .boom 'I` somewhat shorter than the width of thetransfer car I -so that when the carriage 8 is in its left-handretracted position, the ends of thehoom are within the side boundariesof the transfer car. This permits the free movement of the transfercar'along the track 2 either with or without a furnace car 6.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the-United `States is:

1. In combination with a transfer car, of a carriage mounted on saidtransfer car for movement transversely of said car, an elongated memberhaving a rst end secured to said carriage and extending inthe directionof movement of said carriage, a Vpulley at Yeach end of said elongatedmember, a cable passing around said pulleys having a length extendingbetween said pulleys and extending from said pulley on said first end tothe more remote side of the car, means securing the ends of said' cabletosaid car, means for connecting a second car to be moved to said lengthof said cable at a point adjacent said carriage, and means for movingsaid carriage on said transfer car to its opposite side thereby to' movesaid second car to a position beyond said opposite side of said transfercar.

2. In combination with a transfer car, of a pair of rails on saidtransfer car extending transversely thereof, a carriage mounted on saidrails, an elongated member having a rst end secured to said carriage andextending in the direction of said rails, a pulley on eachend vof saidelongated member, a cable passing around said pulleys having a lengthextending between said pulleys and extending from said pulley on saidfirst end to thev more remote side of the car, means securing the endsof said cable to said car, a second pair of rails on said transfer carextending transversely thereof, means for connecting a second car onsaid second pair of rails to said length of said cable at a pointadjacent'said carriage, and means for moving said carriage on saidtransfer carto its opposite side thereby to move said second car adistance greater than the movement of said carriage.

3. The combination with a :transfer car, of a carriage mounted on saidtransfer car for movement transversely of said transfer car, a boomhaving a first end secured tosaid carriage and extending substantiallyparallel with the path of movement of said cariage, said boom having alength substantially equal to the width of said transfer car so that theends of said boom are within the side boundaries of said transferV carwhen said carriage is moved to a retracted position adjacent one side ofsaid transfer car, a pulleyl on each end of said boom, a cable passingaround said pulleys having a length above said boom extending betweensaid pulleys and extending from each pulley to the remote side of saidcar, means securing the ends of said cable to opposite sides of saidtransfer car, and means for connecting a second car to be moved to saidlength of cable at a point adjacent said carriage so that when saidcarriage is moved from said retracted position to the opposite side ofsaid transfer car said second car is moved to a position beyond'saidtransfer car.

4. The combination with a transfer car, of a carriage mounted on saidtransfer car for movement transversely of said transfer car, a boomhaving a first end secured to said carriage and extending substantiallyparallel with the path of movement of said carriage, said boom having alength substantially equal to the width of said transfer car so that theends of said boom are vwithin the side boundaries of said transfer carwhen said carriage is moved to a retracted position adjacent one side ofsaid transfer car, a pulley on each end of said boom, a cable passingaround said pulleys having a length above said boom extending betweensaid pulleys and extending from said pulley on said first end to thevremote side of said transfer car, means securing the ends of said cableto said transfer car, connection means secured to said upper length ofsaid cable at a point substantially adjacent said carriage when saidcarriage is in said retracted position for connecting a second car tosaid cable, and driving means connected to said carriage for moving saidcarriage transversely of said transfer car to its opposite side wherebya second car connected to said connection means can be moved to aposition beyond said opposite side of said transfer car.

5. The combination with a transfer car for furnacesy and the like, of acarriage mounted on said transfer car for movement transversely of saidtransfer car, a boom having a first end secured to said carriage andextending substantially parallel with the path of movement of saidcarriage, said boom having a length substantially equal to the width ofsaid transfer car so that the ends of said boom are within the sideboundaries of said transfer car when said carriage is moved to aretracted position adjacent one side of said transfer car, a pulley oneach end of said boom, a cable passing around said pulleys having alength above said boom extending between said pulleys and extending fromeach pulley to the remote side of said transfer car, means securing theends of said cable to opposite sides of said transfer car, connectionmeans secured to said upper length of said cable at a point adjacentsaid carriage when said carriage is in said retracted position forconnecting a second car to said cable, and driving means connected tosaid carriage for moving said carriage transversely of said transfer carto its opposite side thereby to move said connecting means at twice thespeed of said carriage whereby a second car connected to said connectionmeans is moved to a position beyond said opposite side of said transfercar.

GEORGE W. HEGEL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PA'I'ENTS Number Name Date 2,321,253 Schellentrager June8, 1943

